Symphonic orchestra plays music from Sonic the Hedgehog

A couple of days ago, I was looking at this excellent webpage (via serialdeviant) with 25 years of Sesame Street memories (plus downloadable number song!), and I was thinking, won't it be great if some arranger could do something for a full symphonic orchestra one day? WOW!! Imagine, People In Your Neighbourhood with strings and percussion!

And it's really happening! OK, not SS songs, but video game music performed by the Los Angeles Philhamonic with choir this July! (via theoryisthereason). I can't attend this, I wonder if they will release a CD.

Concert Program
Halo®
Metal Gear Solid®
Warcraft®
Tron®
Myst®
Medal of Honor®
Tomb Raider®
Advent Rising®
Sonic The Hedgehog®
HeadHunter®
Beyond Good & Evil®

Speaking of video game music, Theory mentions this video clip with an excellent performance by a Uni of Wisconsin capella ensemble called Refined. Their website has been swamped the last few days due to the Nintendo publicity.

1) Mario Bros. "Flag/Stage Clear"
2) Super Mario Bros. Main Theme
3) Dr. Mario
4) Mario Bros. 3
5) Mario Bros. "Star"
6) Tetris
7) Mortal Kombat
8) Mario Bros. "Dungeon"
9) The Legend of Zelda
10) Mario Bros. "Game Over"

There's another video with Mario music on the piano. And another, The Italian Plumber, arranged for violin, cello, and piano. And another in jazz arrangement; SuperMarioBrosSuperBuckJazz. And Robosexual has the original songs taken straight from the game! My favourite is Super Mario Bros. 2 Level One. It's the same song in the SuperBuckJazz clip. I remember playing this level so many years ago in my cousin's house in Indonesia...it's so good. More from /..

I especially like grand original music in computer games. I'm not sure if other popular games have this sort of thing, for example, the kind that's found in Rome: Total War, by Aussie composer Jeff van Dyck. Forty five minutes of epic stuff. Well, the games demand no less an epic soundtrack. And, it's already done in in-house symphonic style.

We do cover versions of Bach, Mozart etc. nowadays because they were pop music in their time for the rich and famous. In 200 years time, video game music (and dare I say Sesame Street and Wiggles songs?!) might be de riguere in concert halls too! Yeah!